News

New Sustainability Guide for Brazil's Livestock Industry Open for Consultation

05 October 2015

BRAZIL - In order to further reinforce the growing sustainable practice of the Brazilian livestock sector, the Brazilian Roundtable on Sustainable Livestock (GTPS) has created a sustainability guide and is now opening it up to public consultation in order to receive contributions from the country and the world.

The concept of sustainability varies from country to country due to influencing factors, including legislation, the availability of resources and pressure from the market and consumers. The Guide of Sustainable Livestock Indicators was produced by the GTPS to define what sustainability is, in practice, for the conditions of each of Brazil's biomes, as well as serve as a tool to improve sustainable practices across all the links of the country's beef production chain.

The guide will encourage greater participation by members of the Brazilian livestock value chain in the adoption of good practices, programmes and other measures that serve to increase domestic sustainable production. However, the aim is not to determine levels of performance or create a certification system.

"The intent of this guide is to be inclusive. We want to contemplate everyone, from those who have just begun their journey on the path of sustainability, to those who want to show the results they have achieved. We are sure that every link in the chain has the potential to become even more sustainable," says Fernando Sampaio, GTPS president.

The document is divided into five principles: management, communities, workforce, the environment, and the value chain. These were developed by a GTPS committee and tested by members based on the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, International Labour Organisation Conventions and Recommendations, Brazilian legislation, protocols for good agricultural practices, and the sustainability standards for agricultural commodities.

The guide will be open for the first public consultation until 20 November. This will be followed by a second stage prior to the finalisation of the document, scheduled for mid-2016. Once the public's comments have been collected, the guide will serve as a basis for a Rural Producer Training Program to be developed and run by the GTPS, next year, in addition to being made available online as a resource for consultation and self-assessment.

In order to access the first public consultation of the Guide of Sustainable Livestock Indicators, click here.